Bitmo is an app that I don’t use too often, but when I do, I save money and it makes me feel good!
It’s an app that you can use to send and receive gift cards.
You can also earn rewards when you shop through the app at specific retailers, like a lot of other apps (Dosh and Ibotta to name a few).
And one other thing that Bitmo does is it donates 2% of your gifting spend (that’s how much you spend on gift cards for others) to a charity- there are currently eight, including the San Diego Zoo, Rady’s Children’s Hospital, Feeding America, and The Salvation Army.
Right now they are offering bonus points when you refer new friends. 20,000 bonus points (that’s a $20 gift card) for everyone that joins, connects a card, and does a transaction. THey run referral bonuses a few times a year, but it’s usually for a $2-$5 Dunkin’ gift card or something small- Never a $20 bonus! And as far as I can tell, there is no limit on how many bonuses you can earn!
They are a San Diego, CA area business too. It’s cool to support local businesses, especially right now when a lot of small, local businesses could use the help.
PreK students (age 4 by Sept. 1st, 2021) are now eligible for all BOOK IT! programs. Be sure to include those students in your enrollment!
The nice part about BOOK IT is that each teacher can choose to participate, it’s no longer a school wide program. Everything is done online, and certificates are emailed when they are earned. With the digital program, parents can use digital certificates in person, over the phone, or online, for carryout, delivery or dine in providing even more ways for them to celebrate their child’s reading accomplishments.
Get Started here! And remember to share this post with your teacher friends!
Everyone loves pizza- and nothing is better than FREE PIZZA!
Today and tomorrow (4/28 & 4/29), Wayfair is having an incredibly HUGE sale! With deals that will save up to 80% on everything for your home and FREE SHIPPING, it’s time to give your home a little refreshing.
I’m excited- we need to replace a few things around the house, and this is my chance to do it and stay on budget!
One of the best parts about this collection is that they come in sizes S-3XL and tons of great colors making it perfect to snag a few! This deal is simple and priced crazy low strating at just $7.99 with coupon code: SPRINGDEAL.
Details:
Coupon Code SPRINGDEAL and it makes the final price on these tops $7.99 – $12.99
There are many types of reusable menstruation products on the market these days. Cups, discs, cloth pads, “period panties”. Here are five reasons to give them a try!
1-While they may have a higher out-of-pocket, over time they cost less than disposable/one-use menstruation supplies. My Diva cup cost $35, but I’ve used it consistently for a year. On average, those who menstruate spend $159 or more per year on menstruation supplies, which equates to $6360 over the reproductive lifetime.
2- Reusable menstruation products are better for the environment. Some disposable menstruation products can’t be recycled, and often aren’t environmentally friendly. The plastics take a long time to biodegrade. Reusable pads can be rinsed out after use and then tossed into the washer and dryer.
3- Some reusable menstruation products can be used/left in for a longer amount of time than disposable. For example, I can wear my diva cup for up to 12 hours (discs have about the same time), but tampons need to be changed every 4 to 6 hours.
4- Many companies of reusable menstruation products help those in need, or donate a portion of their profits to those who would not otherwise be able to afford menstruation products, People in underserved communities, schools, and homeless shelters.
5- It’s always good to try something new. People have been menstruating since the dawn of time, and until the past five or six years ago, there weren’t too many different ways to “deal” with the flow. Now those who have periods have choices. Try a new product, try a new brand, you might be surprised, you might find something new that you fall in love with. If you told me 10 years ago I would use a cup, I would laugh in your face. But, it has really helped with my cramps.
If you are interested in checking out some of the reusable menstrual products that I talked about, here is link to my Amazon list with tons of products.
The kids have been begging for homemade cookies lately, and I’ve been busy with other stuff, so I haven’t had tons of time to make cookies.
I dug through the cupboard last week and realized that I had all of the ingredients except baking soda. I used the last half box I had to deodorize the kids bathroom.
So I turned to an old favorite, Kodiak Cakes Power Cakes Flapjack & Waffle Mix. and because of the other ingredients, I used a smidge of baking powder (please remember that soda and powder are not interchangeable in recipes- it has a lot to do with the other ingredients and their pH/chemical makeup) and the cookies turned out perfect!
In a large mixing bowl, cream the butter and peanut butter.
Add sugars one at a time and mix until fluffy.
Add eggs and vanilla and mix until incorporated fully.
Mix in baking powder, salt, flour, and oats. Once all are blended into the dough, add chocolate chips.
Drop tablespoon-sized dough balls on cookie sheets that have been greased or are lined with parchment paper or a silicone baking pad. I prefer silicone baking pads.
Bake at 350 degrees for 8-10 minutes. Let cookies rest 1-2 minutes before transferring to the cooling rack.
This recipe makes approx. 3 dozen cookies. If you are allergic to peanuts, you can substitute sunbutter or your favorite nut butter. Do Not use Nutella- It contains a lot of sugar and other ingredients that will throw off the chemistry of the recipe and you won’t get yummy cookies.
If you’re like me, you’ve been socially isolated/staying home for the better part of a year, wearing the same clothes, and it’s getting a little repetitive.
But at the same time, you don’t want to go to the mall. And as much fun as shopping on Amazon is, it’s hard to buy clothes on Amazon sometimes.
Last week, after I dropped the kids off at school and ran a couple errands, I found myself in South Bay. I remember that there used to be a discount/mark-down clothing store off of Palomar Road and interstate five, so I decided to drive down and see if it was still there. It is! And it’s even better than I remembered. It’s called Everything’s A Deal (it used to be Everything’s $5.00) and they’ve changed their store again.
The address is: 1141 Bay Blvd, Chula Vista, CA 91911
In a true wholesale try store the more you buy the cheaper the price per item becomes. If you buy between five and 10 items it’s $27.50+ tax for all 5 to 9 items. And the prices go down from there. Unlike a lot of discount clothing stores (I’m looking at a Ross) it’s not mostly trash/fast fashion/awful sweatshop crap.
Originally $44, marked down to $5.99!I love this brand! They make such cozy sweaters and jackets. Originally sold at Nordstrom’s Rack.
Everything’s A Deal buys lots from well-known retailers (Sears, JCPenney, Nordstrom‘s Rack, or fifth Avenue, just to name a few) and they have a large warehouse-style store where everything is separated by size. All the plus sizes are together, all the small, medium, large, etc.
The nice thing is that the sale prices are for everything. Shoes, accessories, purses, close. They have kids’ clothes in men’s clothes too. So conceivably you could read your entire family there and some really cute outfits and not break the bank. Everything is new with tags. I bought five items and spent $29.99 after tax out the door. I got a jacket, address, two new T-shirts, and a really cute vest that I’m going to tie-dye.
All five items are name brand, and the jacket is a brand that is sold at Nordstrom rack. I googled the RN number and discovered that the original price of my brand new coat was $89.99. My two shirts had the tags still attached, my vest is from a brand I remember seeing at Macy’s, and my new dress, which is adorable, is from a brand that target sells.
Super Cute Sweater from A.N.A. a JCPenney BrandThis sweater, originally from JCPenney started out life at $47, and is now $5.00! Such an amazing deal!
There’s another location on Broadway in Lemon Grove (7696 Broadway Lemon Grove, CA) if South Bay is too far of a jog for you. Honestly, the stores are a great help for us, they help me stretch our clothing budget for new items. I’m able to afford better quality items for the same price that I would be paying at Walmart. And because the clothing swaps are going to be not happening for probably the next year or two, we won’t be able to pick up hand-me-downs or other secondhand clothing and household goods.
Clothing swaps are one of the ways that we are able to save a lot of money and keep the kids’ clothes. The kids are starting to grow out of the clothing that they have been wearing, and because there’s been no clothing swap this year, I don’t have clothing in the next size ready. I am going to have to purchase clothes.
I have been doing buying clothes and replacing our wardrobes little by little when I find stuff on sale and clearance that kids and I will like. This is mostly through jcp.com because they have such great sales and coupons. And I can combine those with cashback deals from online aggregators like top cashback, MyPoints, and Honey.
The CSA emails us in advance to give us a heads up as to what may be in our boxes each week, and that really gives me an upper hand when it comes to meal planning for the week.
Veggies and fruit are delivered each Monday by Yasukochi Family Farms CSA. For $25, it’s a great deal. I don’t have to pick anything, go to the store, or carry it upstairs. I can’t go to the store and get the same amount we get weekly for $25. Seriously. It’s a deal. I spend about an hour on Monday afternoon cleaning and prepping veggies for the rest of the week.
Over the weekend, I did some meal prep: I made a batch of potato cheese soup on Saturday evening, and yesterday I cooked rice, made a big salad, cooked marinated chicken thighs, and refilled the snack/school lunch box to make morning lunch prep even easier.
I’m planning on making a couple batches of soup today or tomorrow. I’ll freeze half, and the other half will go into the fridge for my lunch throughout the week. Broccoli Cheese Soup and Copycat Zuppa Toscana are planned (most of the ingredients will be coming in the CSA box today).
I’ve gotten a pretty good inventory of the pantry, freezer, and fridge done (I try to update it after every shopping trip), so I’m able to plan meals and use up what we’ve got with little waste. If you are looking for a kitchen inventory printable, I like the kitchen inventories here. They are great printables.
I only post our dinner plans for the week, because our other meals are usually the same each day.
Breakfast: Coffee with 1/2 and 1/2 for me, and pancakes or something along those lines for the kids. The kids are nuts about pancakes. The Big Kid has been on a protein shake kick in the AM.
Lunch: Kids take lunch to school. I eat leftovers. Everyone rejoices.
Dinner: Usually, I do a crockpot meal on Mondays, but now that we are home all the time, we’ve been having an odd combination of fully home-cooked, scratch meals, and frozen entrees and veggies. I have been posting our meal plans on Instagram too- As well as pics of stuff we are doing to keep busy.
Sunday: Leftovers and roasted veggies (it was Brussels Sprouts and onions with bacon)
Monday: Chef Salad, Grilled Croissants (halved, buttered and cooked on the flat top), smoothies
There are thousands of referral bonus points just waiting to be claimed. If you want some, simply tell all your friends about Fetch. Through 4/26/2021, you’ll get 4,000 points for anyone who signs up using your code.
There’s no limit to the Rewards you can earn, so tell everyone. It’s super easy, and each friend who signs up gets 2,000 points.
Let’s get started! If you are new to Fetch Rewards, you can learn more here. When you sign up, use my referral code ND2TB and share the love (and referral points!).
When you sign up, leave your referral code in the comments!
In order for you to qualify for the increased referral bonus, your friends must enter your referral code and complete a valid receipt now through 11:59 PM PT on 04/26/2021. After 11:59 PM PT on 04/26/2021, the referral bonus will expire.
I’ve been hunting freebies and deals all week! Earth Day was this week and there were a few freebies to take advantage of. You can check out my Earth Day post here.
A new year means new birthday freebies. I put together a list for 2021. Check it out here.
Most of these freebies and deals are online. I am not encouraging anyone to go into stores or go out into public. Mask up, wash your paws, stay socially distanced!
Bitmo is an app that I don’t use too often, but when I do, I save money and it makes me feel good!
There are many types of reusable menstruation products on the market these days. 
It’s back!
